There Are Always Consequences
by thebigianthead
Summary: This short story takes place a week into the season 10 premiere which encompasses about four months of time. Not a team story. Not an individual story. It's just a story about possible consequences to actions in the season 9 finale. Thanks for reading. Please review.


In my opinion, the NCIS characters did a lot of things wrong in the season 9 finale and they're lucky none of them died. This is my take on something that happened after that day because of their actions.

Warning: Spoilers for season 9 episode "Till Death Do Us Part" which aired on May 15, 2012.

Disclaimer: I own nothing of NCIS. Just borrowing for a bit.

Note: No beta on this. All mistakes are mine.

Title: There Are Always Consequences

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The alarm had gone silent and the large group of people waited for the all clear signal so they could return to their offices and labs. Most were without coats, but at least it was a mild December: not too cold, no precipitation or wind. Finally, after what seemed a longer time than they had stayed out the week before, the all clear sounded and the employees headed back inside. Most everyone trudged along quietly and in an orderly fashion, but one man was irked and not shy about grumbling to his teammates.

"It's been weeks. How many more of these fricken' things are we going to have to suffer through?"

Ziva tried to gently placate him. "As many as it takes, Tony."

Her words didn't help as Tony groused some more. "I feel like we're back in elementary school. I'm surprised Vance doesn't make us hold hands with a buddy so we don't get lost. Hey, Vance could be like Arnold Schwarzenegger in "Kindergarten Cop." He had this whistle and he ordered all the kids around: had them standing at attention and then marching whenever he felt like it. McGee can be the kid who carries the ferret. I'll be the kid with the gynecologist dad and Ziva…"

"There are always consequences, Agent DiNozzo." From somewhere behind them, Director Vance's words ended Tony's griping before he could finish his sentence. His cheeks flushed red as he ducked his head a little and secretly wished he'd received a Gibbs head slap before Vance had heard him say anything. Gibbs, Abby, Ziva, Tony and Tim had all screwed up and now they would endure as many drills as the Director wished for them.**

Now traveling back in time to six days after the bomb exploded. It is 8:30 a.m.

The main doors eased closed just as the last two senators entered from the side of the hearing room and sat down. It took only a few seconds for the small audience to quiet. This was a closed hearing: no public to bear witness, no mainstream media reporters with camera crews to inform the world, no distraught or outraged family members seeking answers or retribution. The chairman turned on his microphone.

"Good morning, everyone, the Subcommittee on Terrorism and Homeland Security of the Senate Judiciary Committee will come to order. Our investigative hearing today deals with response to immediate threats. Specifically the response that occurred at NCIS just prior to the explosion that killed and injured many people and severely damaged buildings and property. The car bomb that exploded at the Navy Yard occurred only six days ago and we are all still in shock following this latest terrorist attack, but our immediate attention is required to protect personnel at other facilities around the globe."

A few people whispered and the chairman waited a few seconds for quiet. He then took the next several minutes to summarize events that had happened before the car bomb exploded at NCIS. Those in the small audience knew about most of the incidents, but hearing about them all in one swoop brought quiet gasps and muttered curses as they learned of the connections and saw the graphic depictions on the two flat screen monitors. The slide show covered the warehouse fire, the cargo ship fire, the car bomb, the explosion and fire aboard the U.S.S. Brewer, the attempt on the U.S.S. Benjamin Franklin, the house fire. The aerial view of the Navy Yard was not new; everyone in the world had seen the visual evidence of the destruction. They hadn't seen all the statistics and the room fell silent as everyone digested the numbers.

Casualties. Number killed. Number injured, broken down by severity. Percentage of building destroyed. Blast radius in yards and number of blocks. Number of other buildings damaged. Number of shattered windows. Number of deaths and injuries attributed to flying glass and debris. Number of cars destroyed or damaged around the site. The estimated blast equivalent in pounds of TNT. The distance away from the site that the blast was heard and felt. The seismometers reading recorded at the time of the blast. And in large letters the words 'numbers are preliminary and subject to change.'

After a dramatic pause, where everyone regained their composure, the chairman continued.

"The FBI and DOJ have judicial bribery, police brutality, witness intimidation, satellite and video surveillance, and wiretapping on their calendars, among many other things. Several committees and subcommittees, both senate and house, are holding meetings and will convene hearings in the near future to look at the procedures for tracking and apprehending terror suspects, interagency communication and cooperation, force protection, basic civil emergency management - prevention, preparedness, response, crisis management and consequence, security procedures for safeguarding agency directors, protection of DOD personnel and their families, as well as many other concerns. In addition, a couple of lucky breaks kept field agents from being killed or injured during the investigative process so training and re-training for federal agents and the assignments of federal employees is being reviewed. The car that blew up had been parked next to a building. After Oklahoma City barriers were put up to keep vehicles away from buildings and official cars were limited to stopping and dropping off high-ranking personnel. No cars were to be parked next to buildings."

The first witnesses of the day fidgeted a little at the table in the front and center of the hearing room. One was feeling guilty. The other was wondering if the promotion had been worth it. There they sat, basically alone, on display and vulnerable, waiting for the senators to conclude their comments and actually begin the questions.

"Today's hearing will examine sections of the NCIS Building Security and Emergency Procedures Guide. We will learn about safety protocols and emergency preparedness at the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, located at the Navy Yard in Washington, D.C. We WILL find out why there were so many deaths and injuries, because based on video recordings and eyewitness accounts, there was ample time, approximately four minutes, for all personnel to evacuate the vicinity of the bomb. Procedures were in place, but personnel either did not receive the proper training or they did not follow the documented response plan. The recordings reveal a fair amount of chaos outside the building before the bomb exploded. During the evacuation, people walked on the sidewalk and street in both directions right next to the SUV. Inside the building, for over two minutes, there was no urgency for personnel to leave and many stayed in offices and labs. When they did leave, many used the elevators instead of the stairs."

The chairman glanced up from the paper in front of him. Satisfied that everyone appeared to be listening intently, he continued.

"Personnel exited the building on the side with the bomb instead of choosing a different path and nobody was there to direct them away from the danger. At least one person re-entered the building after evacuating and still others never left, choosing instead to finish work, and a few barricaded themselves and made phone calls, reaching out to a girlfriend, a husband and 911."

There was nothing funny about what the people did and nobody laughed. It was surreal that people disobeyed their training and chose to stay in the building.

"NCIS is facing a new budget climate, as are most federal agencies, and it is being asked to reduce costs and eliminate redundancies wherever possible, but training and preparedness should never be compromised. With that in mind, we are here today to find out what went wrong and to hopefully keep it from happening again. Suspected terrorist, Harper Dearing, is still at large, and everyone is looking for him and his accomplices, but we still need to deal with urgent matters, like this one."

He dipped his head slightly and turned to look at his fellow senators; first left and then right. All of them looked ready to begin so he stared at the men sitting at the table directly in front of him.

"The committee members have agreed to forego opening remarks and get right to the questions. We will call many witnesses, but we're starting near the top, with you two, and I thank you for coming here today. Director Vance, Deputy Director Granger, your phones are turned off, but I promise that if anyone needs to talk to you, their message will be immediately relayed to me and I will call a recess to allow you time to communicate."

The witnesses looked a little relieved at that or maybe just hopeful that many calls would come in so they could get away from the hearing room. One of the men reached for a glass near the full water pitcher before changing his mind and his hand returned to the table top in front of him.

"Your responses to questions will be limited to four minutes. The timing system will turn the green light to yellow at three minutes and when it turns red you will stop speaking. The senator who asked you the question will decide if you will be given more time to respond. You have submitted written statements addressing NCIS policies and procedures and your account of the events of that day, and you have completed an initial questionnaire. In addition to your testimony here, all of those statements will be printed into the official record of these proceedings."

The men at the table seemed to nod slightly, indicating that they understood.

"All witnesses who testify before this subcommittee are required to be sworn so I ask you now to stand and raise your right hand."

Three hours later after a 10 minute break.

"We have hashed out the policies and the training, and we have determined that procedures for a safe and orderly evacuation were in place. Senator Hahn will recap. The red-headed senator smiled slightly and got down to business.

"The fire alarms were operational, but nobody pulled one for two minutes. A building maintenance worker shut off the audible alarm almost immediately, but kept the visual flashing lights in the hallways going. Personnel in offices and labs with closed doors thought the first alarm was a mistake and were unaware of the evacuation until someone pounded on the door to alert them. The building did not have a PA system that would have allowed everyone inside to be aware of the bomb threat and where they should avoid going, but almost everyone had an office phone, a computer, a cell phone, a pager or some other electronic device that could have received a flash warning with the instructions for evacuation. A community emergency notification system has never been implemented at NCIS."

One of the witnesses dropped his head and stared at the table top. CENS had never been needed before, but now he mentally put it on his already very long to-do list.

"Personnel are supposed to safely stop their work, secure sensitive materials or evidence quickly or take it with them, and gather their personal belongings if it is safe to do so. On that day, many personnel were in labs, the garage, evidence lockup or the bathroom. They were very slow securing materials and instead of getting out using the nearest approved exit available to them, many returned to their desks to retrieve whatever items they thought were important."

Senator Hahn paused for a few moments, perhaps reminded that some of the dead were found at the work stations. After glancing at the subdued audience, the lawmaker continued.

"Personnel were supposed to use the nearest safe stairs and proceed to the nearest exit. On that day, many people used the elevators, not the stairs. Upon exiting, personnel were to quickly proceed to their designated emergency assembly area and report to the roll taker. Once again personnel did not follow their training, choosing instead to stand around in groups close to the building or to get to the parking lot and try to drive away, clogging the egress so emergency vehicles could not get through. In leaving before notifying someone, they left supervisors and coworkers wondering if they were still in the building when the bomb exploded. This caused a long delay in determining casualties and providing aid. Marines and others tried to direct personnel away from the building, but in doing so, directed them closer to the SUV. When it was determined that the SUV might contain an explosive device, there was no notification or warning to keep people from coming close to it. During drills, personnel are reminded to remain calm, don't rush and to not panic. Video recordings show a lot of panic inside and outside."

The Senator looked to the chairman, indicating the summary was over. It was time for the chairman to take the reins and he didn't waste any time.

"Director Vance, please tell us what you did after Agent Gibbs told his team to clear the building and call the bomb squad."

The End

**Vance didn't evacuate immediately either.

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My sincere thanks to Kerry who supplied the name Owen Granger as the deputy director. :)  
Thanks very much for reading this little story. I've never been to a senate or house hearing, but I've watched them live on television.


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